The day before the firs-ever War Chamber, Kevin Von Erich took his sons Ross and Marshall to the hallowed grounds where the Sportatorium once stood to reflect.
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Kevin taking off his shoes was a nice touch. Man, I have so much respect for him. A true survivor.
Thank goodness for the sake of his family & extended family, he was mentally strong. They must've really needed him with so many family tragedies.
Lacey Von Erich a strong woman for moving forward living a happy life and keeping her Dad's memory alive. RIP Kevin
@@aubreyaragon988 rip kevin? thats not her dad
I want to say this about Kevin Von Erich he is the last you know you guys are never know you guys are going to live forever and now it's really nice to Kevin to reaching out his fans whoever even thinks about how to play suicide is not an option and he would just see what I got that DVD triumphs and tragedies of the world class when I hear Kevin Von Erich say that that really touches I was really touched in the morning and in a way like he's right he just reaching out to his fans saying hey you don't have to do that you know suicide is no option do you put your family through a lot of hurt there was Carrie did some bad things and they just letting us know that's no way to solve a problem when you do something like that I'll be thinking about what I'm going to put my family too if I was in his shoes if I did something like that it's not worth it
That was cool. Usually wrestling barefoot was a gimmick reserved for savage wrestlers but Kevin plainly explained why he simply found it more practical.
I am glad he has kids that love him. I cannot imagine the pain he feels of being the only surviving sibling. I lost one brother and cry for him still after all these decades
Wound that never heals. Sorry for your loss, I hope you find comfort in his memory
So sorry for your loss ❤
The place was magic. RIP Fritz, David, Kerry, Mike, Chris, Terry, Buddy, Gino, Chris Adams, Akbar, Missing Link, Brody, Percy and all of the other people we have lost who made it so. The fans will always remember and never forger.
and of course, Gary Hart
Yes! RIP to All the Legends
Bruiser Brody in general, along with his matches with Abdullah The Butcher scared me as a real little kid. Gino was great. When he teamed with Chris Adams they were probably the best heels in the company.
well said
Indeed,Indeed
As a Houstonian, I'll always tip my hat to the Von Erichs. Absolute legendary wrestling family from Texas akin to the Funks & Guerreros.
Those families are true wrestling dynastys much like the harts up north
morales , michaels
Greetings from Pasadena Tx
The "First Family" of wrestling. Kevin was and still is my favorite wrestler of all time.
Fritz was trained by stu hart
I love the Von Erichs and glad seeing the next generation of Marshall and Ross carry the tradition.
His kid without the shirt on has his body💪
I’m from Arlington and my dad drove me by there in the 80’s said, “That’s where the Von Erichs wrestle.” It was magic for me. This was during the Freebird feud which nothing can ever beat that today. It was like Georgia NWO invaded Texas and we couldn’t have that. Ahhh 1982 the year I fell in love with professional wrestling! Good times!
I live in Arlington now, but back then i lived in Irving. My mom would drop me and my best friend off at the Dallas Sportatorium every Friday night in 1983. It was my whole life back then lol. I had a collection of autographed pictures. And I'm not proud of it.....but one night (back in '83) when Gorgeous Jimmy Garvin was wrestling....he pissed me off and i threw a pickle and hit Sunshine in the face.
AdrienneS1970 That’s an amazing story!! He brought that pickle to the face heat!! I’m sure Sunshine got hit in the face with worse.🤣😂
You guys are lucky was only able to watch those feuds on tv those wrestling companies were better than wwe
@@hectorortiz1852 Inside the Sportatorium, at the top of the bleachers, they had a caged area where other wrestlers could come out and watch a match that was going on. Met a lot of them that way. Met Mike Von Erich at an Ozzy concert in Ft Worth back in '86. Fun times!
AdrienneS1970 that’s awesome too bad wwe bought out some of these wrestlers and buried them to keep hulkamania alive would have been nice to see others have the belt
There's a smile on my face and a tear in my eye at the same time.
Anyone else choke up? I sure did, Thank you Kev for the memories👍
WCCW was the wrestling that made me a life long fan...
OscillatorCollective The WWE can't compare😬
That is holy ground here In Texas!
This was so cool. I remember meeting Kevin Von Erich at my elementary school when I was in the 1st grade. He was there visiting a relative that was one of the students I believe, but said hi to all the kids. We were in awe. The Von Erichs were the heroes of Texas, I'm glad Kerry's daughter,and Kevin's sons are carrying the torch!!!!
The Von Eric’s vs the Hart Foundation. A true clash between two separate generations of the best.
I don't remember that match ever happening
didn't they come in the same generation?they both started in the early 80's i believe,and wrestled throughout the 80's,and 90's,so they definitely didn't come from two different generations
I wanna cry, I miss that place! 😭
Goosebumps...Man #WCCDUB!
The von erich's family's is my favorite wrestling family's. I grew up watching WCCW.
Damn good ppl. Thanks for the memories, Kevin.
The Fenway Park of Professional Wrestling.
sorry, Yankee Stadium is much more memorable than that dump you call a stadium...
Hey have a great day!
@@CarbiesChronicles I'm a lifelong Yankee fan but Yankee stadium doesn't even exist anymore and Fenway is basically the most historic place in baseball.
The original comment is kind of dumb. If it was anything like Fenway it would still be around
Lets not get sour over Yankee vs Red Sox stuff. Sox had their season last year and Yankees have theirs this year. Enjoy the ride whoever you root for. The TV announcer Bill Mercer when he used to do the opening for WCCW used to call the Dallas Sportatorium the Fenway Park of professional wrestling.
Lots of memories gone by!!
Great to see Kevin Von Erich God Bless Much Respect And Success
I had a interaction with Kevin once. Great man great person great father.
It’s a real shame that it wasn’t named a landmark! Honestly really sad!!!
The Masonic Temple in my hometown was demolished last year despite being listed on the National Register of Historic Places for a long time. Same deal, the owner didn't keep the place properly maintained, then the city building department stepped in right away when it threatened to be a hazard.
The city of Dallas does not believe in landmarks. Everything is torn down to make way for something else. Historic districts are a rarity in Dallas.
So much of that has happened with Detroit. Just as it relates to wrestling, Detroit has lost Joe Louis Arena, the Silverdome, and the Palace of Auburn Hills. Going back further Olympia Stadium is long gone. Even Cobo Hall is not the same.
That's right , the city of Dallas should've made a landmark with statues of all the Von Erich's on this property
Hopefully they never build on it
The famous Sportatorium! 🙌
Yes! That place truly was electric. We would drive from Little Rock to watch wrestling at the Sportatorium.
My dad would go there every friday night to watch wrestling. I regret not being around when it was in it's prime and in the eighties with World Class Championship Wrestling. It's a shame they couldn't rebuild it or remake it.
Eunice Mullins Wow! You must have a lot of great stories to tell about going to those wrestling cards back then!
Shaun's Collectibles And a few good photos. I wish I had owned a better camera.
I love the Von Erichs they were a great fantastic wrestling family still wonder why they died so young I miss them seeing them wrestling R.I.P.😞😢🌹
Wish I could like this more than once!
That wrestling was awesome back in the day wccw!!!!! Used to watch that alot on the weekend,s....
God, bless you Kevin 💕
What a great experience. You can tell how much love and respect Kevin and his sons have for each other, and how much it meant to all of them for him to share those memories and visit such an important place in their family's history.
Massive respect to this man
That was great. Long live the von Erichs.
Loved watching on Saturday mornings. Blessings to you all.
Now this is a video to be excited to be about!
This brought tears to my eyes. I'm born and raised here in Dallas TX. I remember watching the whole family wrestle: Fritz, David, Kevin, Kerry, Chris... I remember being in the 1st grade living in the West Dallas Projects, one of the poorest, most crime filled neighborhoods in Dallas- and David and Kevin visited my school (Priscilla L. Tyler) right after they had won the tag team championship belts for the first time. Kevin also had the heavyweight championship. They were two of the nicest men you'd ever want to meet. They gave each of us a black and white autograph photo of themselves standing and Fritz sitting in between them. I've never forgotten that experience. And though I've never met any of them again, my heart hurted with every tragedy the von Erich family have had to endure and overcome. Thank you for the touching video.
Kevin my favorite of the brothers
Grew up in southern Oklahoma and the Von Erich family was legendary ...Texas Tornado was my favorite back in the day
With the tragedy that befell that family I'm surprised he gave his blessing to his sons to wrestle.
I guess he figured he can guide his sons along the way as for them not to get caught up in the negatives of the business, not that stuff won't happen but he'll be there to guide them through Plus, it seems like it's a career that they actually want to get into
he also knows the pitfalls and how to guide them away from it
They are Von Erich, they are wrestling
I remember growing up here in Oakland,CA and watching WCCW on ESPN every Friday at noon. Up until the day they merged with Jerry Jarrett and became the USWA. I dated a girl in Dallas for a long time, and I went to that lot where the Sportatorium was, and it does feel like holy ground. I also went to the Von Erich’s Graves and laid yellow roses on their graves.
Who you telling? I was hoping for the day they were going to come out to the Bay Area and do a show
IRON5 I wish they would’ve come this way to do a show. I remember watching Steve Austin’s very first wrestling match. It was in WCCW and he lost to Texas Red, a tall masked wrestler who had a decent career as The Undertaker.
Nice, very nice
I never got to go to Texas but I watched a lot of VHS tapes of the von erichs and loved every one of them got to see them in person at other arenas
Ben Grech Man, I would’ve loved to see them wrestle live. Especially when David was still alive
I was in the 5th grade in 1983, WCCW was showed at 11:00pm on Saturday night in Miami where I’m from. On Monday’s, I’d be with my friends at school talking about it like it was the greatest thing we’d ever seen. Great childhood memories!
Hes still feeling all those moments you can see in him. Gob bless him great guy i miss all 80s matches great moments, watched it every sat and sunday
As a Native Tennessean, born in 1981, i remember watching The Von Erichs growing up. They were to that era what The Rock was to his. They electrified every single they wrestled. They thrilled audiences all the time. what stands out to me from my memories watching them, to now watching docs on them is that they were legit nice people. They would go out of their way to make fans feel appreciated. They would make sure the fans were happy. Especially the ladies. (Had to throw that is there). Their feuds with the Dynamic Duo, The Freebirds, Gary Hart crew, Skandor Akbar crew, will live on as the best feuds in Texas Wrestling History, and some of the best feuds in Pro Wrestling History period. This family is one of the jewels of the business as in life. To me Tennessee and Texas has always been connected. From The Battle Of The Alamo, living philosophy i believe, and sports. We have always been connected. Pro Wrestling was no different. Whether we sent talent to The Lone Star State, or They sent talent to us, it was always a pleasure to see Tennessee and Texas locks horns in the ring. From Jeff Jarrett battling Eric Embry to Jerry Lawler Vs Kerry Von Erich, Those feuds will live on forever. From Tennessee To Texas, both representing The South. Thank you Von Erichs for being apart of the business. Thank you for bringing enjoyment to our lives. Thank you for all you have done, and will do. David, Kerry, Chris, Mike, Mr. Fritz, i wish you guys were still here. It would be awesome to hear your views on the business now as well as life in general. Yall are missed in more ways than one. #LOVELIVEWORLDCLASS AND #LOVELIVETHEVONERICHS!!!!!
TheDarkWarlords well said my friend
That was lovely
@@roldangonzalez7360 and @Glory Mosby: Thank you kindly
Damn, let us know when your down visiting again, you still have fans out here kev...... love ya bro
Marshall and Ross need to bring it to the new generation! I remember my childhood growing up watching the Von Erichs! Even remember the day when Kerry Von Erich made his name in the WWF! Long live The Texas Tornado!!
What a great wrestling promotion you had the von Erich’s, freebirds, jimmy garban, Chris Adams, missing link, missy hyatt, John Tatum and Rick rude and so many more loved watching it all the way in Philadelphia they should have gone national
They did kinda go national for a time. We were able to see them in Illinois
gone ,but i have not forgotten about the Von Ericks, i use to love when Fritz Von Erick use to give them the iron claw, i really miss those guys., i loved them, my Daddy loved them too ,Friyz was his favorite at that time, Wahoo McDaniel, Doug Williams, Danny McChain, Earnie Ladd, ect.
Roberta Cesar you love and adore them so much and followed all their matches,yet you don't know how their last name is even spelled,lol...me personally i was a huge follower & obsessed with the "Macho Man",Ricky Savante...i know everything about him!!haha...sorry just playing
You guys are great wrestlers 🤼♀️ me and my brother grew up watching all of you in the 80s
Funny, the dark haired looks like Kerry and the blonde looks like David!
Need to highlight the history as it is part of wrestling. The Von Erichs gave flair and flash to wrestling.
God bless Kevin & his sons look great
Memories, great memories.....thank you
😢.... Couldn't hold back the tears....
That's really a great video piece. The Von Erich family is legendary, especially in Dallas.
Awesome!!! Watched in SoCal and loved it. So raw and fun. Remembering Chris & Gino coming out to “Bad to the Bone” and getting down with the Von Erichs!!
Those were some great matches.
I was there when Adams and Hernandez got there heads shaved and everyone would sing "bald to the bone" lol. Good times man
As long as the internet has existed I watch videos of wrestling on there and this is the most heartwarming moment in any video I have ever seen and I'm very thankful for the Von Erich family!
Thank you MLW for this amazing promo. Von Erichs will always be remembered Texas Legends. WCCW is gone but their promotion will never be forgotten.
I remember watching South west championship wrestling in the 70s. Fritz Kevin David Kerry Mike Chris. The von Erich's family's. Texas love the von Erich's family's.
Much love and respect, Mr. Kevin! Thank you and your family for the sweet memories! God bless you all!
I wish I had been alive and into wrestling when the Von Erichs were huge. I didn't ever hear about them until the early 2000s and never watched them wrestle until about a year ago. I wish I could have been around for it.
Excellent video, I love the Von Erich wrestling dynasty. There is no wrestling story to be told without mentioning Fritz, Mike, David, Kevin, Kerry and Chris. I also miss the Sportatorium. Great memories.
Real nice moment
I can STILL Hear the Drums to the Intro Theme Music of WCCW in my head when I close my Eyes. The 80s was a GREAT ERA. In LA as a kid I watched WCCW on K D O C Channel 56 sometimes would wake up at 4 am on a Sunday Morning just to watch The FreeBirds.
Pro Wrestling was at its best during the Territory Days.. So much history at this venue..Great Video!!
GOD BLESS YOU KEVIN YOU HAVE ALWAYS BEEN MY FAVORITE WRESTLER WHEN I WAS A KID AND I USED TO CALL YOU THE TEXAS TARZAN 😊✌👳SPORTATORIUM LEGENDARY
The cost of renovating the building was likely too steep. Not exactly a brand new neighborhood. Kevin, glad that you are still alive on planet Earth.
Heroes Of World Class. If you can find a copy of it was made before WWE bought the rights to world class library. Kevin visits and goes through what was left of Sportatorium before they tore it done. It is sad.
SuperMutant2099 True. Unlike The WWE fluff fest that was a real documentary
Search for it here
@@Freebie1975 I know its on youtube but didn't want to link something probably not posted legally on youtube. Try not to anger the channel owners.
@@cbod14 Give me a break, the WWE documentary was pretty solid and truly captured the importance of World Class and its impact on the business.
Jonathan Turbide It was a bullshit fluff piece that barely dealt with the issues surrounding the promotion and the wrestlers. Hi Vince
WCCW was a true Wrestling Treasure!👍👑🌎
I'm glad to see the new generation of the Von Erichs with their dad Kevin keeping their families spirit alive.
I just thank God that those two wonderful young guys still have a living link to the history of their family in their father. Not to mention hours of video to watch their uncles in action. I'm sure they've had a million questions over the years about their grandpa and their uncles especially after following them all into the family business. So grateful a part of that legendary family still remains. God bless Kevin Von Erich and his sons.
Thank you MLW. Beautiful and touching video.
Wrestling royalty ! This wrestling pioneers family made wrestling what it is today before there was hulk there were von erichs
I wish I could watch this one time without crying. So many memories. God bless Kevin, Ross, and Marshall.
The von Eric’s genetics are great they were all in good shape great memories of watching them wrestle every Saturday night channel 11 on regular tv in the Dallas area where I grew up whole family gathering around and watching while I tried all the moves on my older brothers and sisters times to remember
Man i use to do the same thang.
Yes, I use to watch WCCW all the time, and the Von Erichs was 1OOO% OVER. My favorite wrestling family.
What a great video so sad that the Sportatorium was not preserved. In our society we tear down so many old buildings and venues and forget the memories and special times we spent with our families and loved ones it’s a real shame so glad to see Kevin doing well with his sons. He was freakin awesome when he wrestled nothing like good ole Texas wrestling. Today’s wrestling does not come close to what these guys did back in the day. God Bless!
It got really run down. Many gang bangers hung out around it and did their dope deals. Not a very good area at all.
Very cool moment to get to see. I have so many memories of going to the matches at the sportatoriam such a big part of my teens and twenties it’s a damned shame it couldn’t have been preserved as a historical site.
That area became so crime infested that they would have just destroyed it. I loved going there during my younger days. We were poor but my daddy always managed to take us kids.
@@jessielong9228 I thought Dallas Downtown section was good
@@gregorylevi1826 Not that part. It is not downtown. It is really bad in that area now. A lot of dope dealers around too.
Kerry von Erich, a beast, and a perfect fit for wrestling, and a treat for the ladies as well. I was mesmerized by him and his bros as a youngster! Smiling right now thinking about the matches. My best to the whole von Erich click!
Wow great viedo Texas from your friends on tennessee
It’s so awesome seeing these guys!!! 💜💜💜😭
God bless the Von Erichs welcome home
my childhood....i love how the von erichs are finally getting the love and respect................long live the claw.
The Sportatorium was awesome. I'm happy I got to watch many matches there. It was metal siding with no air conditioning or heat. Seats were wooden benches with no backs bolted to the floor with plumbing fittings. It smelled like sweat and blood, and it was in a sketchy part of industrial downtown Dallas. The vibe was intense, particularly when Stranglehold would start playing and the Von Erichs would make their way to the ring.
Son with hat has a similar physique to a young Kevin Von Erich.
Yes he do
@John Volken I'd let him practice headscissors on me ALL day....WHILE wearing the cowboy hat!
wrestles like his dad also
What's to stop a new sportatorium being built on those grounds? The sportatorium we saw every week on WCCW wasn't the first, after all. The Madison Square Garden in NYC isn't the first. Things can be rebuilt.
The owners of the property. When the stretch of road that goes by that corner was bought, a lot of places were razed for development.
Whomever owns the property right now. When Industrial Blvd became Riverfront, a lot of the properties in that area became progressive casualties, including businesses all the way down to the Longhorn Ballroom on Cotinth street.
@Plemons Residence I dont think Vince, exposed anything. people just got smarter about it.
They had a lot of kick ass matches too....
This was the most tragic family I had to live through as a Wrestling fan. I can’t even imagine what KEVIN feels. I’m so glad that they’ve moved forward. I was blessed to witness wrestling history with the Von Erich’s and the Freebirds. The movie was tough to watch but the same time I felt like I had to thank you KEVIN for being strong.
Kevin's world the good the bad an the losses it brought not only in the sport of wrestling but the family tradgies ...Damnn ..lost my whole family in a way similar an I don't wanna go back it's to painful. I give kevin ALOT OF credit ..where I couldn't. Maybe 1 day but I'm 53 an haven't yet
Yes they went through so much that even the fans don't know about. Kevin had his own demons but so proud of him for being able to live above it all. Love him.
Von Erich Brother's we're the reason I started watching Wrestling so good to see Kevin again ❤ RIP to all awesome wrestler's that left us great memories ❤
Was there 2 months ago and walked around. Would of been awesome to have run into them. Shame it was not made into a museum
Went there many times! It’s sad how most of the Brothers are gone really except for Kevin! May they all Rest In Peace all the legends!
I grew up going to those matches. It was part of my childhood I’ll never forget.
Von Erich’s were the best to watch, my favorite.
Awesome man! 💙🙏
My granny worked at the hospital, and when the Von Erich's ever came it was big news.
The Von Erichs were my idols in the 80's
Fabulous!!! Thank you for sharing!!!
God bless the Von Erichs
It's time the Von Erich Legacy continues through the next generation of Von Erichs! Legacies dont die! It would be nice to see it happen!
Great memories of my past. Thank you for posting this. Nice to see Kevin and his boys on the "Holy Grounds" of WCCW.
Great video... last time I was in that spot was 91 and it was a sad sight moreso the area around the building than the actual sportatorium itself ...... It’s nice to see Kevin have family to share this with again.
Sure miss these wrestling times. Thanks for the memories
That man is such a badass! Real salt of the earth kinda guy.... reminds me of my old man....sure do miss him. Men were just built different back then 💯